Post by Claire on Mar 9, 2008 18:19:18 GMT 1
THE HORSEHAVEN SERIES by CHRISTINE PULLEIN THOMPSON
BOOK 1 – HORSEHAVEN
BOOK 2 – HAVOC AT HORSEHAVEN
BOOK 3 – HORSEHAVEN LIVES ON
EDITIONS REVIEWED; CAVALIER PAPERBACK EDITIONS (FIRST EDITIONS)
MAIN CHARACTERS
CATHY – A teenage girl, the heroine of the books.
JOSH – A boy, similar in age to Cathy and her best friend
JENNY – Owner of a riding stables, then runs the Horsehaven sanctuary
MARK – Jenny’s sometime fiancee
SAMMY – One of the helpers at the sanctuary, rich and spoiled, she is disliked by Cathy
BILL – A retired man who helps out at the stables and is a grandfatherly figure to Cathy
SARAH & GILLIAN – Two sisters, younger than Cathy and Josh who also help out
VINCE – Sammy’s sometime boyfriend, thuggish and spiteful. He later has a crush on Cathy which leads to tragedy.
ALICE – An old lady who helps out at the sanctuary.
FANTASY – A lop eared pony they all love.
SUMMARY
Cathy and Josh are horse-mad and spend all their time at the stables run by Jenny. But financial problems cause Jenny to have to sell the stables. The children are distraught but then they come upon the idea of running the place as a charity to rescue ill-treated horses and Horsehaven is born. Throughout the books, money is tight, all sorts of problems arise, and the sanctuary is often in danger of being closed down, but various schemes and events keep saving it from closure.
The friendship of Cathy and Josh is also threatened by a beautiful self-centred girl called Sammy who turns up at the stables. And it is through her that Vince appears on the scene, a thuggish boy whose affections she toys with. When Vince is also rejected by Cathy, he exacts a terrible revenge on the sanctuary. It seems that, after all the troubles they have overcome, this could be the final straw for Horsehaven. But then help comes from an unlikely source…
REVIEW
The subject of a horse sanctuary, barely explored in pony books before the 1990s (with the exception of the Follyfoot books by Monica Dickens), suddenly seemed to become popular at the end of the 20th century with the Hollywell Stables series by Samantha Alexander, the Heartland books by Lauren Brooke and the Horsehaven series all appearing at around the same time. They do make for a departure from a gymkhana or adventure plot, in some ways reminiscent of the old stories where a broken down old horse was rescued and restored to health and beauty.
The Horsehaven series is prob closest in theme to the Hollywell series and can be compared to it in many ways. Unlike the Holywell stables series which departs into some rather lurid adventures, Horsehaven series keeps its feet more firmly on the ground and is fairly realistic. Possibly too realistic at times, with some fairly graphic descriptions of suffering horses and ponies. Unfortunately Christine does seem to dwell upon these moments which in my opionion require a lighter touch in a children's book. The Holywell books tend to soften the blow of such cruelty by blending humour into the books. However as we all know Chrstine, unlike her sister Josephine, does not really 'do' humour. Yet the realism of the books does make the stories more convicing than the Holywell books.
Both sets of books dwell upon the need for money, but whereas Holywell is saved by a pop star benefactor, Horsehaven's saving is (a bit) more down to earth. As with Holywell and Heartland, (and in fact the majority of modern pony books) there is an element of romance in the book. Cathy does have deep feelings for Josh. This element is handled very deftly and subtly by Christine, whereas in Samantha Alexander's books romance does seem to have more of a teen magazine giggly girlie quality.
It is strange how Christine's later pony books manage to contain all the requisite elements of a modern pony booked aimed at the teenage market - romance, drugs & alcohol (in the case of Vince in the Horsehaven books), worrying about looks, etc -
and yet still retain the atmosphere of an old-style classic pony book. I am not sure if this would make her books appeal to the teenager or not (being well past those days myself!) but to the old school reader this is a real bonus. I am still unsure whether it is a flaw; an inability to completely change with the times or in actual fact a consumate skill in blending both modern and traditional elements together! But whichever it certainly works for me!
Unlike many pony books the ponies in the Horsehave series do have characters, and, because riding comes secondary to caring for and bonding with the animals, they are seen as friends rather than just steeds. Although the bond between the children and the animals perhaps isn’t quite so pronounced as in Diana’s books, you do feel that the children care for the ponies rather than them just being conveyances upon which to win prizes, as in so many pony stories. When Fantasy, the favourite horse of all the Horsehaven regulars, goes missing in the first book in the series, everyone is distraught, and the whole mood of the book changes.
The plots of the three books in the Horshaven series are fairly negligable with all three books following a similar pattern of havoc, lack of money, problems, etc to be solved at the end of each volume, with the biggest problem coming at the end of the last book. Certainly there is nothing out-of the ordinary in the books in that sense. But what really holds the series together and keeps you reading is the character of Cathy.
As with most of Christines books, the character of the heroine/hero is the focal point of the series, rather more than the horses or ponies themselves. We usually know a lot about all of Christine's characters and can easily sympathise with them, and this series being written in the first person tends to emphasise this empathy even more.
Again, as with many of the author's characters, Cathy is rather a negative person and very introspective. She constantly worries about what is going to happen next. In some ways she is a bit irritating and you feel like giving her a kick up the backside and telling her to pull herself together. But in other ways you do empathise with her self-doubt. And her love for the ponies really does shine through.
In other words she is a real character with good and bad points.
The main flaw in Cathy's character is her inability to accept change. Strangely in real life this is a characteristic more common to the old than the young, but in Cathy it is prob her most dominant trait. It is of course forgiveable when she does not want the riding school to be sold at the beginning of the book, but throughout the series time and time again she rebels against change. She doesnt like the appearance of Sammy on the scene as it could change her relationship with Josh, she doesn't like any of the ponies going to be rehomed, she doesn't want the bluebell wood to be sold even though she knows it may be the only chance to save the sanctuary. And most importantly rather than change her life when her parents move to the caravan park where her father has a job, she elects to live apart from them with Jenny. Even at the end of the series when there is enough money for Horsehaven to be saved she sees the changes as negatively affecting her:
"Everything seemed to be changing before my eyes. My whole purpose in life was vanishing." (Horsehaven Lives On page 122)
Here, and in many other instances, Cathy's loathing for change is very selfish and causes others to suffer. Her parents are upset because she does not want to live with them. Jenny is made to feel guilty when she contemplates selling the woods, and Cathy even casts a blight over the celebrations when the sanctuary is at last saved. Josh tells her "don't spoil everything. This is the moment when all our dreams have come true."
But throughout the books Cathy is growing up, is starting to accept change. The main turning point probably comes in the second book when she is chosen to model some clothes with the stables as a backdrop and she is told to get her hair styled. Initially she is reluctant but when she finally agrees she is transformed. With her physical transformation come other changes. She doesn't feel that Sammy is such a threat any more, she feels much more confident:
"Never would I feel unequal to Sammy again, never would anyone call me Uriah Heep again. With my long greasy hair gone...I just wasnt the old Cathy any more.” (Havoc at Horsehaven page 109)
She even admits that it is selfish to want Rosa the shire horse to stay, just because she has grown attached to her. The chapter of the book is entitled "I change" and it is obvious it does not just apply to her physical appearance.
And yet the change does not happen over night. Cathy goes back to some of her old ways and it is not until the end of the series that she really does change. She accepts that life cannot remain constant and realises that not being permanantly at Horsehaven could in fact be benefical to her life. Instead she can do other things. Although she will still often be at the sanctuary she knows she will now move back in with her parents, thus making them happy. She will have more time to concentrate on her schoolwork and get the good job she desires. She realises at last that change can be good; and despite things changing throughout life, the way you feel about certain things will always remain:
"(I) saw myself attending a brand new college, making new friends, moving on, but knew at the same time that Horsehaven would remain part of me forever." (Horsehaven Lives On page 126)
The title of the last book, Horsehaven Lives On, illustrates the fact that Cathy has accepted at last that the place does not revolve around her, that even if she leaves it, it will always ‘live on.’
This growing maturity and self awareness is common with Christine’s characters. In some ways Cathy’s progress to maturity is similar to that of Debbie in I Rode A Winner, who also learns to be less selfish and egocentric as the book progresses, although the Horsehaven series is not quite in the same class as that excellent book.
The backdrop of the horse sanctuary in the books is indeed that – a background, a convincing and detailed one, yes, but although ostensibly a pony series, this is in fact a series where the growth and change of the character is the central theme in the books. For that reason, the series can be read on many levels. Adults and older children will probably get more out of this series than younger readers. In summary, a thought-provoking read, if not in the top echelons of the author’s work, and as with many of the author's works fairly downbeat.
I would rate the series as a whole as 3 HORSESHOES (GOOD)
(IMHO The first and last books are the best, the middle one is not so good.)
BOOK 1 – HORSEHAVEN
BOOK 2 – HAVOC AT HORSEHAVEN
BOOK 3 – HORSEHAVEN LIVES ON
EDITIONS REVIEWED; CAVALIER PAPERBACK EDITIONS (FIRST EDITIONS)
MAIN CHARACTERS
CATHY – A teenage girl, the heroine of the books.
JOSH – A boy, similar in age to Cathy and her best friend
JENNY – Owner of a riding stables, then runs the Horsehaven sanctuary
MARK – Jenny’s sometime fiancee
SAMMY – One of the helpers at the sanctuary, rich and spoiled, she is disliked by Cathy
BILL – A retired man who helps out at the stables and is a grandfatherly figure to Cathy
SARAH & GILLIAN – Two sisters, younger than Cathy and Josh who also help out
VINCE – Sammy’s sometime boyfriend, thuggish and spiteful. He later has a crush on Cathy which leads to tragedy.
ALICE – An old lady who helps out at the sanctuary.
FANTASY – A lop eared pony they all love.
SUMMARY
Cathy and Josh are horse-mad and spend all their time at the stables run by Jenny. But financial problems cause Jenny to have to sell the stables. The children are distraught but then they come upon the idea of running the place as a charity to rescue ill-treated horses and Horsehaven is born. Throughout the books, money is tight, all sorts of problems arise, and the sanctuary is often in danger of being closed down, but various schemes and events keep saving it from closure.
The friendship of Cathy and Josh is also threatened by a beautiful self-centred girl called Sammy who turns up at the stables. And it is through her that Vince appears on the scene, a thuggish boy whose affections she toys with. When Vince is also rejected by Cathy, he exacts a terrible revenge on the sanctuary. It seems that, after all the troubles they have overcome, this could be the final straw for Horsehaven. But then help comes from an unlikely source…
REVIEW
The subject of a horse sanctuary, barely explored in pony books before the 1990s (with the exception of the Follyfoot books by Monica Dickens), suddenly seemed to become popular at the end of the 20th century with the Hollywell Stables series by Samantha Alexander, the Heartland books by Lauren Brooke and the Horsehaven series all appearing at around the same time. They do make for a departure from a gymkhana or adventure plot, in some ways reminiscent of the old stories where a broken down old horse was rescued and restored to health and beauty.
The Horsehaven series is prob closest in theme to the Hollywell series and can be compared to it in many ways. Unlike the Holywell stables series which departs into some rather lurid adventures, Horsehaven series keeps its feet more firmly on the ground and is fairly realistic. Possibly too realistic at times, with some fairly graphic descriptions of suffering horses and ponies. Unfortunately Christine does seem to dwell upon these moments which in my opionion require a lighter touch in a children's book. The Holywell books tend to soften the blow of such cruelty by blending humour into the books. However as we all know Chrstine, unlike her sister Josephine, does not really 'do' humour. Yet the realism of the books does make the stories more convicing than the Holywell books.
Both sets of books dwell upon the need for money, but whereas Holywell is saved by a pop star benefactor, Horsehaven's saving is (a bit) more down to earth. As with Holywell and Heartland, (and in fact the majority of modern pony books) there is an element of romance in the book. Cathy does have deep feelings for Josh. This element is handled very deftly and subtly by Christine, whereas in Samantha Alexander's books romance does seem to have more of a teen magazine giggly girlie quality.
It is strange how Christine's later pony books manage to contain all the requisite elements of a modern pony booked aimed at the teenage market - romance, drugs & alcohol (in the case of Vince in the Horsehaven books), worrying about looks, etc -
and yet still retain the atmosphere of an old-style classic pony book. I am not sure if this would make her books appeal to the teenager or not (being well past those days myself!) but to the old school reader this is a real bonus. I am still unsure whether it is a flaw; an inability to completely change with the times or in actual fact a consumate skill in blending both modern and traditional elements together! But whichever it certainly works for me!
Unlike many pony books the ponies in the Horsehave series do have characters, and, because riding comes secondary to caring for and bonding with the animals, they are seen as friends rather than just steeds. Although the bond between the children and the animals perhaps isn’t quite so pronounced as in Diana’s books, you do feel that the children care for the ponies rather than them just being conveyances upon which to win prizes, as in so many pony stories. When Fantasy, the favourite horse of all the Horsehaven regulars, goes missing in the first book in the series, everyone is distraught, and the whole mood of the book changes.
The plots of the three books in the Horshaven series are fairly negligable with all three books following a similar pattern of havoc, lack of money, problems, etc to be solved at the end of each volume, with the biggest problem coming at the end of the last book. Certainly there is nothing out-of the ordinary in the books in that sense. But what really holds the series together and keeps you reading is the character of Cathy.
As with most of Christines books, the character of the heroine/hero is the focal point of the series, rather more than the horses or ponies themselves. We usually know a lot about all of Christine's characters and can easily sympathise with them, and this series being written in the first person tends to emphasise this empathy even more.
Again, as with many of the author's characters, Cathy is rather a negative person and very introspective. She constantly worries about what is going to happen next. In some ways she is a bit irritating and you feel like giving her a kick up the backside and telling her to pull herself together. But in other ways you do empathise with her self-doubt. And her love for the ponies really does shine through.
In other words she is a real character with good and bad points.
The main flaw in Cathy's character is her inability to accept change. Strangely in real life this is a characteristic more common to the old than the young, but in Cathy it is prob her most dominant trait. It is of course forgiveable when she does not want the riding school to be sold at the beginning of the book, but throughout the series time and time again she rebels against change. She doesnt like the appearance of Sammy on the scene as it could change her relationship with Josh, she doesn't like any of the ponies going to be rehomed, she doesn't want the bluebell wood to be sold even though she knows it may be the only chance to save the sanctuary. And most importantly rather than change her life when her parents move to the caravan park where her father has a job, she elects to live apart from them with Jenny. Even at the end of the series when there is enough money for Horsehaven to be saved she sees the changes as negatively affecting her:
"Everything seemed to be changing before my eyes. My whole purpose in life was vanishing." (Horsehaven Lives On page 122)
Here, and in many other instances, Cathy's loathing for change is very selfish and causes others to suffer. Her parents are upset because she does not want to live with them. Jenny is made to feel guilty when she contemplates selling the woods, and Cathy even casts a blight over the celebrations when the sanctuary is at last saved. Josh tells her "don't spoil everything. This is the moment when all our dreams have come true."
But throughout the books Cathy is growing up, is starting to accept change. The main turning point probably comes in the second book when she is chosen to model some clothes with the stables as a backdrop and she is told to get her hair styled. Initially she is reluctant but when she finally agrees she is transformed. With her physical transformation come other changes. She doesn't feel that Sammy is such a threat any more, she feels much more confident:
"Never would I feel unequal to Sammy again, never would anyone call me Uriah Heep again. With my long greasy hair gone...I just wasnt the old Cathy any more.” (Havoc at Horsehaven page 109)
She even admits that it is selfish to want Rosa the shire horse to stay, just because she has grown attached to her. The chapter of the book is entitled "I change" and it is obvious it does not just apply to her physical appearance.
And yet the change does not happen over night. Cathy goes back to some of her old ways and it is not until the end of the series that she really does change. She accepts that life cannot remain constant and realises that not being permanantly at Horsehaven could in fact be benefical to her life. Instead she can do other things. Although she will still often be at the sanctuary she knows she will now move back in with her parents, thus making them happy. She will have more time to concentrate on her schoolwork and get the good job she desires. She realises at last that change can be good; and despite things changing throughout life, the way you feel about certain things will always remain:
"(I) saw myself attending a brand new college, making new friends, moving on, but knew at the same time that Horsehaven would remain part of me forever." (Horsehaven Lives On page 126)
The title of the last book, Horsehaven Lives On, illustrates the fact that Cathy has accepted at last that the place does not revolve around her, that even if she leaves it, it will always ‘live on.’
This growing maturity and self awareness is common with Christine’s characters. In some ways Cathy’s progress to maturity is similar to that of Debbie in I Rode A Winner, who also learns to be less selfish and egocentric as the book progresses, although the Horsehaven series is not quite in the same class as that excellent book.
The backdrop of the horse sanctuary in the books is indeed that – a background, a convincing and detailed one, yes, but although ostensibly a pony series, this is in fact a series where the growth and change of the character is the central theme in the books. For that reason, the series can be read on many levels. Adults and older children will probably get more out of this series than younger readers. In summary, a thought-provoking read, if not in the top echelons of the author’s work, and as with many of the author's works fairly downbeat.
I would rate the series as a whole as 3 HORSESHOES (GOOD)
(IMHO The first and last books are the best, the middle one is not so good.)